Very few individuals believe they have the perfect pillow. It reminds you of the story of the three bears: you search for a pillow that you feel is the most comfortable, based on the choices that you have when making your selection. Not too soft, not too hard, not too thick, nor too thin.
Unfortunately, due to drool (saliva) from an open mouth while sleeping, dust mites, and the natural breakdown of the pillow content, and the inability to launder most pillows, it would be prudent to buy a new pillow at least once a year, because a fresh pillow cover once a week is not enough to protect a pillow from germs and bacteria that will inevitably collect on and inside a pillow.
Almost everyone seeks greater comfort while sleeping. Proper support for the head, face and hands cannot be achieved with an ordinary pillow, regardless of its size, shape or degree of softness. The most common solution is to manipulate the pillow into a shape whereby you can find the most comfortable spot in which to rest your head, while tossing and turning during the night.
Another solution has been to attach a small second pillow to the standard pillow. For example, see U.S. Pat. No. 4,754,513 and U.S. Pat. No. 7,165,279 each of which shows a second pillow fixed in place, so that it cannot be moved, replaced, or manipulated during the night.